Den of flying Lions take to the skies

Written by Special to The Times
Thursday, 05 August 2010 16:35

Seven of Rosa Fort High School Air Force Junior ROTC cadets recently received orientation flights through the Flight Orientation Program sponsored jointly by the Air Force and Civil Air Patrol. Each cadet flew for approximately one hour, with about 30 minutes of the time flying at the controls in the copilot’s seat. The Civil Air Patrol pilot coordinator, Captain Bart Smith, was the actual pilot who took each cadet up for the flights.Lt. Col. Wayne Hill, the senior JROTC instructor at Rosa Fort High School, transported the cadets in the school van to Olive Branch Airport, where all flight departures originated. Following an in-depth safety briefing from Capt. Smith, the first cadets were scheduled to fly at 10 a.m. The weather did not initially cooperate and the flights didn’t begin until about 1:35 p.m., when the clouds cleared to at least 2,500 feet above ground level (AGL). That’s when the real fun began!